CAT DEATH
BOB the cat, star of best selling book and film A Street Cat Named Bob, died after being hit by a car, his heartbroken owner has revealed.
His ex-heroine addict owner, James Bowen, who wrote a best selling series about his cat who changed his life has opened up about learning the devastating news.
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James Bowen revealed the gut-wrenching moment he felt that his best friend had died.
James was up all night trying to get Bob to come home after he popped out after dinner and even went out into the streets to look for him with his fiance, Monika.
The couple searched for the cat all day on Monday too.
"On Monday at about 5pm all of a sudden I felt this terrible nausea" he told the Daily Mail.
Less than an hour later, the vet called.
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Breaking down in tears, James sobbed: "They said: 'We’ve got Bob here, but it’s bad news.' and I said: 'Please don’t say it. Don’t say it.' And they said: "He’s been in an accident and he’s passed away.'"
Bob was killed by a blow to the head from a car on Monday night in a hit and run. The trauma caused a haematoma that killed him instantly.
He was handed into the vet by a member of the public who found him. The driver has not yet come forward.
Bowen, a recovering addict, first met Bob in 2007 when he found him abandoned and injured.
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He spent his last £30 on taking bob to the vet, but afterwards Bob wouldn't leave his side, even hopping on the bus to Angel with him.
He went on to take care of the cat and they quickly became inseparable, busking and selling 'The Big Issue' on the streets of London.
James credits Bob with his own survival.
He said: "I’m not sure that I’d even be here today if I hadn’t met him.
"Bob gave a direction and purpose to my life that it hadn’t had before. From that moment on, everything changed and all the positive things that happened after that can be traced back to him.
"His influence on my life has been extraordinary. He made me believe in myself."
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Bowen's first book, A Street Cat Named Bob, which told his and Bob's story, was published in 2013.
It became a bestseller and the original story was also made into a film released in 2016 - starring Luke Treadaway as Bowen.
Ever the cool cat, Bob played himself in the film and its sequel too.
Unable to know the exact sequence of events around Bob’s death, a devastated James, 41, has been left imagining the worst.
He has been devastated ever since.
'He made me believe in myself'
James said: "I find myself looking around and expecting to see him and when I realise he’s gone, it feels as if I can’t breathe. It’s a nightmare. He was my best friend.
"Did the driver stop? Did they even know they’d hit him? How long was Bob lying there before the passer-by saw him?"
"I just can’t believe it. I thought we would have more time together. He was getting older but I’ve no doubt he still had years left in him."
James said he has struggled to sleep since Bob first went missing.
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Above all, he cannot believe the animal who has been at his side day and night for more than a decade was taken from him in such cruel circumstances.
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James said: "He was happy wherever we went so long as he was with me. We were soulmates and best friends.
"It’s going to be emotional seeing him again on screen, but I will because I want to celebrate Bob’s life. Everything I do now will be about celebrating him."
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